Ethylene-carbon monoxide copolymers, designated "E/CO" or "[ethylene co-CO]" herein, are generally made from pure ethylene and CO feeds using either free radical initiators or organometallic catalysts. The free radical products are useful as PVC modifiers or degradable films. The organometallic catalyzed products are linear alternating polymers that are useful as engineering resins. Undesirably, though, such polymers prepared according to either method have low solubility in paraffins.
Copolymers of acetylene, olefin, and carbon monoxide, designated "acetylene/olefin/CO" or "[acetylene co-olefin co-CO]" herein, are known in the art, and have beneficial crosslinking and curing sites. However, such copolymers are linear copolymers, and consequently have low solubility in paraffin.
There is therefore a need for paraffin-soluble E/CO copolymers and for non-linear acetylene/olefin/CO copolymers.